WA Payroll Tax Pledge: $1.5M Threshold Is Proposed, Not Law

Key takeaways

• On 25 October 2026 the WA Liberals pledged to lift the payroll tax-free threshold from $1 million to $1.5 million
• It is a proposal from the Opposition, not a law and not a Government announcement
• The WA Government’s payroll tax guide, last updated 2 June 2026, shows the rules in force: a $1 million threshold and a 5.5 per cent rate
• The Opposition says the change would cost about $300 million a year and abolish payroll tax for 3,500 businesses
• The release does not give a start date that we could find
• Do not describe the pledge as current law on your website, careers page or in job ads
• Check your own position with Revenue WA and your accountant. This is not tax advice

A headline that says “payroll tax cut” can read like something that has happened. The release behind this one says something narrower: if a future Liberal National Government is elected, it will raise the payroll tax-free threshold. Until legislation passes, the rules that apply to your business are the ones that applied last week.

This is a web development view of what to do with a proposal like this, and what not to do. It is not tax advice. We are not saying whether the pledge is good policy, only separating what is proposed from what is law so your site and your plans stay accurate.

What Was Pledged

The release, dated 25 October 2026, is from the Leader of the Opposition, the Shadow Treasurer, the Shadow Finance Minister and the Shadow Small Business Minister. It says the WA Liberals have announced a payroll tax reform and makes these claims:

• A Liberal National Government will increase the payroll tax-free threshold from $1 million to $1.5 million
• It would abolish payroll tax for 3,500 businesses and benefit approximately 14,500 employers
• A business with a $1.5 million annual payroll would save approximately $31,700 every year, and businesses with payrolls up to $7.5 million would also benefit
• For a $2 million payroll, the effective rate would fall from 3.17 per cent to 1.72 per cent
• The reform is estimated to cost $300 million annually

Those are the Opposition’s own figures, not a Government costing and not an independent estimate. The release also says the threshold has not moved since 2020 and cites CCIWA research on how businesses would use payroll tax savings. We have not checked that research.

Takeaway: this is a campaign promise with a price tag the Opposition has put on it, and nothing more yet.

What Is in Force Today

The WA Government’s payroll tax calculation guide, last updated on 2 June 2026, sets out the rules that apply. From 1 July 2023, for employers whose annual Australian taxable wages are more than $1 million but less than $7.5 million, the rate is 5.5 per cent and the tax is calculated on WA taxable wages less a deductable amount. At $7.5 million or more, the rate is 5.5 per cent on all WA taxable wages.

The guide explains the diminishing threshold: the threshold falls by $2 for every $13 of wages above $1 million. It gives an example: annual wages of $1,200,000 give a deductable amount of $969,231.

We ran the Opposition’s example against that formula as a sense check. At a $2 million payroll, the guide’s formula gives an effective rate of about 3.17 per cent, which matches the release’s current figure. That checks the starting point only. It says nothing about whether the pledge will be delivered.

The first bar matches the Revenue WA formula. The second is the Opposition’s own figure for its pledge, so it is a claim, not a calculation we can check against law.

Takeaway: the rules in force are on the Revenue WA pages. The release is a promise about what might replace them.

How Far the Threshold Would Move

The release says the threshold has not been increased since 2020. The Government’s guide lists earlier thresholds: $850,000 from 1 July 2016, a temporary $950,000 from 1 January 2020, and $1 million from 1 July 2020. This chart puts the pledge next to that history.

The first three bars are from the Government’s guide. The last is the proposal. The release calls the $500,000 rise the largest single increase in the tax-free threshold in WA’s history in dollar terms. We have not independently checked that claim.

What a Local Business Website Should Do With a Proposal

For a Rockingham or Perth business, the practical question is not who wins an argument. It is what you put on your site and in your hiring.

1. Do not publish the pledge as fact. A line like “payroll tax is going up to $1.5 million” on a business page, blog or job ad is wrong today. If you want to refer to it, write “the WA Opposition has pledged”, with a date and a link.
2. Keep your careers page and job ads on current facts. Salary, hours and conditions should not depend on a tax change that has not passed.
3. Date everything. If you write about policy at all, put the date it was announced and the date you last checked, as this post does.
4. Link to the primary source. For rules in force, link to Revenue WA. For a pledge, link to the release.
5. Leave the tax advice to your accountant. Whether payroll tax affects your business, and how, depends on your wages and group structure. Revenue WA and an accountant can tell you. We cannot.
6. Plan the website, not the tax. If you expect to hire, a clear careers page, an accurate team page and a simple enquiry route for applicants are worth building regardless of what a threshold does.

Takeaway: keep proposals out of your copy and policy out of your plans until it is law.

Where This Gets Hard

We read one Opposition release and the Revenue WA calculation guide. We did not find a Government response or an independent costing, and we have not seen draft legislation, because none has been introduced on the pages we read. The release does not give a start date. Everything that depends on an election outcome stays uncertain until then.

For help turning a hiring plan into a clear careers page, see our Rockingham web design and SEO service.

Frequently Asked Questions

Has WA’s payroll tax threshold changed?

Not on the pages we read. The WA Government’s payroll tax calculation guide, last updated 2 June 2026, shows a $1 million annual threshold, a 5.5 per cent rate, and a diminishing threshold for employers with annual taxable wages in Australia between $1 million and $7.5 million. The $1.5 million figure is a pledge announced by the Opposition on 25 October 2026.

Who made the pledge?

The WA Liberals, in a media release dated 25 October 2026 from the Leader of the Opposition, the Shadow Treasurer, the Shadow Finance Minister and the Shadow Small Business Minister. It says a Liberal National Government will increase the threshold. It is not a Government announcement and it has not been legislated.

When would a higher threshold start?

We did not find a start date in the release. Because the pledge depends on a future government and legislation, you should not plan payroll or hiring around it. Use the rules in force and ask your accountant.

Should I say on my website that payroll tax is going down?

No. Describing a proposal as if it were law on a business website can mislead customers and staff. If you mention it at all, name who proposed it, say it is a proposal and link to the source.

Keep Your Site Accurate and Ready for Hiring

Contact us for a quote and we will review your careers, team and contact pages so they state only what is true today and make it easy for applicants to reach you. Contact us for a quote.

Sources and References

1. WA Opposition

   , Historic Payroll Tax Cut To Back Small Business, media release, 25 October 2026. Source of every pledge figure in this post. Read 31 October 2026.

2. Revenue WA

   , Department of Treasury and Finance, Calculation: Payroll Tax Employer Guide, last updated 2 June 2026. Source of the rates, thresholds and formula in force. Read 31 October 2026.

Last reviewed: 31 October 2026.